1954 United States Senate elections

The 1954 United States Senate elections was a midterm election in the first term of Dwight D. Eisenhower's presidency. Eisenhower's Republican party lost a net of two seats to the Democratic opposition. This small change was just enough to give Democrats control of the chamber with the support of an Independent (Wayne Morse of Oregon) who caucused with them.

Republican incumbent Leverett Saltonstall (United States senator since 1945 and Governor of Massachusetts from 1939-1945) was renominated. Other nominees included Socialist Workers Thelma Ingersoll (ran for Senate in 1952.[3]) and Prohibition Harold J. Ireland (candidate for Treasurer and Receiver-General in 1948 and 1952).

Although elected to finish the term, Abel did not run for the next term, and Carl Curtis (R) was elected in November to the next term. On December 31, 1954 Abel resigned and Curtis was appointed January 1, 1955, two days ahead of his elected term.

Hugh A. Butler (R) died July 1, 1954 and Samuel W. Reynolds (R) was appointed July 3, 1954 to continue the term. Reynolds was did not run to finish the term, and Roman Hruska (R) won the seat in November to finish the term ending in 1959.

Like Nebraska, North Carolina had three Senate elections on the ballot. Both Senators had died during the 83rd Congress, leading to appointments and special elections.

Willis Smith (D) died June 26, 1953 and Alton A. Lennon (D) was appointed July 10, 1953 to continue the term. In November, Lennon lost the nomination to W. Kerr Scott (D) to finish the term. Scott took office November 29, 1954.

W. Kerr Scott (D) was also elected to the next term, which would begin January 3, 1955.

Clyde R. Hoey (D) died May 12, 1954 and Sam Ervin (D) was appointed June 5, 1954 to continue the term. In November, Ervin was elected to finish the term.

In South Carolina, Senator Burnet R. Maybank did not face a primary challenge in the summer and was therefore renominated as the Democratic Party's nominee for the election in the fall. However, his death on September 1 left the Democratic Party without a nominee and the executive committee decided to nominate state SenatorEdgar A. Brown as their candidate for the election. Many South Carolinians were outraged by the party's decision to forgo a primary election and former GovernorStrom Thurmond entered the race as a write-in candidate. He easily won the election and became the first U.S. senator to be elected by a write-in vote (William Knowland of California in 1946 was technically the first, but the ballots in that election were blank with no candidates listed, so essentially every candidate was running a write-in campaign).[6]

Sitting Senator Burnet R. Maybank entered the 1954 contest without a challenge in the Democratic primary nor in the general election. His unexpected death on September 1 caused panic and confusion within the hierarchy of the state Democratic party because the state law required that a party's nominee be certified by September 3. Hours after Maybank's funeral, the state Democratic executive committee met in secret and chose state SenatorEdgar A. Brown of Barnwell County as the party's nominee for the general election. Not only was Brown a part of the "Barnwell Ring", but he was also a member of the executive committee.

The state Democratic Party's decision to choose a candidate without holding a special primary election drew widespread criticism across the state. On September 3, The Greenville News ran an editorial advocating that a primary election be called and several newspapers across the state followed suit. At least six county Democratic committees repudiated the action by the state committee and called for a primary election. Despite repeated calls for a primary, the state executive committee voted against holding a primary because they did not think that there was enough time before the general election to hold a primary election.

Immediately after the executive committee voted against holding a primary election, former Governor Strom Thurmond and lumberman Marcus Stone announced their intention to run as Democratic write-in candidates. Thurmond and his supporters stated that the executive committee had several legal alternatives as opposed to the outright appointment of state Senator Brown. In addition, Thurmond promised that if he were elected he would resign in 1956 so that the voters could choose a candidate in the regular primary for the remaining four years of the term.

Thurmond received support from Governor James F. Byrnes and from those who backed his Presidential bid as a Dixiecrat in the 1948 Presidential election. Thurmond framed the race as a "moral issue: democracy versus committee rule"[7] and his write-in campaign was repeatedly assisted by every newspaper in the state, except for those in Anderson. For instance, The News and Courier devoted its front page on November 2 to show voters a sample ballot and it also provided detailed instructions on how to cast a write-in vote. Not only that, but the newspaper also printed an editorial on the front page giving precise reasons why voters should vote for Thurmond instead of Brown.

On the other hand, Brown was supported by the Democratic party regulars and he also gained the endorsement of Senator Olin D. Johnston. Brown based his campaign entirely on the issue of party loyalty, stressing that Thurmond was a Republican ally because he had voted for President Eisenhower in 1952.

Marcus A. Stone, a lumberman in Florence and Dillon, was a candidate in previous Democratic primaries for governor and senator. He did very little campaigning for the general election.

Lander Jr., Ernest McPherson (1970). A History of South Carolina, 1865-1960. University of South Carolina Press. pp. 182–184. ISBN0-87249-169-2.

"Supplemental Report of the Secretary of State to the General Assembly of South Carolina." Reports and Resolutions of South Carolina to the General Assembly of the State of South Carolina. Volume I. Columbia, SC: 1955, pp. 4–5.